THE NATION: On Call

For the second time in seven weeks, the
U.S. put its military power on the line to defend an ally from threat
of attack. Last July's response to a cry of help from Lebanon was
swift, effective andas the world's non-Communist governments were
bound to noteunchallenged by the big-talking Communists. The Chinese
Communist threats to conquer Formosa, and the stepped-up attacks on the
offshore Nationalist island of Quemoy (see FOREIGN NEWS), last week
brought an equally powerful presidential warning that the U.S. would
not hesitate to counterattack, and it brought prompt deployment of U.S.
fighting forces. New element in...